


Rescued

by panchostokes (badwolfrun)



Series: Nick/Greg Ficlets [69]
Category: CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
Genre: Angst, Episode: s05e24 Grave Danger Part 1, Episode: s05e24-25 Grave Danger, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Post Grave Danger
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-29
Updated: 2020-03-29
Packaged: 2021-02-28 23:26:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,565
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23385226
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/badwolfrun/pseuds/panchostokes
Summary: Greg walks in on Nick during a time of crisis.
Relationships: Greg Sanders/Nick Stokes
Series: Nick/Greg Ficlets [69]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1257824
Comments: 6
Kudos: 25





	Rescued

**Author's Note:**

> I came to a halt with my Agony writing today and needed an outlet for all this Nick angst.  
> An anon on tumblr just so happened to come along at just the right time.
> 
> warning for attempted suicide mention.

Greg wasn’t necessarily invited over. None of them were, really, as they were all just making up various excuses to check in on their recovering friend. Each of them taking turns so as to not overwhelm them, Sara had stopped by at the end of their last shift, and now Greg was stopping by before his next.

Which meant that it was already nighttime, though he knew fully well that Nick had never actually adjusted to the swing shift sleep schedule, and was wide awake when he texted Greg to just “come in” using his copy of the key. 

As he entered the house, he grew immediately suspicious of the fact that it was eerily…quiet. He thought back to his childhood, how his mother and grandmother _always_ knew when he was getting into mischief because he was being too quiet. 

But what “trouble” could Nick have gotten into in his own damn house? 

“Nick?” He cautiously set down his bag of comfort goods for Nick on his kitchen counter, turned his head into the hallway, thinking perhaps that Nick was just taking a leak or dump or something. 

Further investigation revealed that his bathroom door was wide open, unoccupied. 

His bedroom, however, was not, and nor was it completely silent. He heard muffled noises, sporadic, with just a hint of a high pitched whine before the sound would fade. 

As quietly and gently as he could, he nudged the door open a few inches, though only the light in the kitchen was on, the hallway still dark enough that a ray of light wouldn’t disturb the ambiance of the darkened bedroom–made even more dark by the blackout curtains that Nick attached to his window. Greg felt a small gust of air blow against his body as the sounds behind the door were un-muffled, and he was able to identify them as soft sobs. 

His eyes adjusted to the darkness, and he saw that Nick was not in his bed. 

“Nick?” Greg whispered. “You in here, man?”

The sobbing was cut abruptly with a sharp sniffling sound, and that’s when Greg’s fingers began to dance for the light switch, unable to locate Nick in the darkened room by eyesight alone.

The light blossomed from the ceiling, the edges of its illumination just barely reaching the far corners of the room, and Greg was able to find a breathing ball of sweatpants and a sweatshirt curled up in the corner of the room, right next to the air conditioning unit. 

“Hey, Nicky,” Greg greeted, his voice soft as he slowly approached his friend. Nick didn’t seem to budge, instead keeping his face hidden in the sleeves of his hoodie. “What’re you doing on the floor? Bed seems a lot more comfortable.”

For a moment, Greg couldn’t tell if Nick had let out a gentle chuckle or another sob. Or both. Either way, he need a distraction.

“Penny for your thoughts? I’m guessing sleep’s still out of the question. When’s the last time you ate something? I know you hate them, but I brought over some instant ramen, figured it’s something quick and easy–”

“I..sood…ee…ed,” Nick’s voice moaned through the silencer covering his mouth.

“What was that?” Greg placed his hand on Nick’s shoulders, tried to unwrap the ball, but in his effort Nick finally lifted his head. His eyes were sunken behind the purple bags they rested on, his face speckled with the red splotches of ant bites, a vein popping in his forehead as water warped the wrinkles near his eyes. His lower lip was trembling, his knuckles turning white as they kept a crossed hold of himself, though Greg noticed a few of the ant bites were bleeding, presumably from Nick’s uncontrollable itching he had witnessed the man do in the hospital.

For a moment, Nick seemed pensive, studying Greg with the same discretion that Greg studied him, and Nick’s shaky breath was covered by the hum of the air conditioning unit resting against the back of Nick’s head. 

“I should be _dead,”_ Nick repeated, more assertion in his voice as he sniffled loudly. He quickly allowed his hand to wipe his face, transferring a small amount of blood onto the tip of his nose before his hand retracted back to his shoulder. “P-people don’t get…put underground unless they’re _dead._ I shouldn’t…I shouldn’t have made it outta there.” 

“But you did, Nick. And nobody else can say that. None of us would’ve…I don’t think I would have lasted even five minutes,” Greg tried to ease the tension with a humorless laugh, but Nick still didn’t budge.

“I almost didn’t.”

He had a point there. If they hadn’t found a way to delay the explosion, Nick and maybe even a few others would have been buried for good. 

“I know.”

“No, _you don’t.”_

Nick finally shifted, sat up though he still shifted a slight ways away from Greg, inched closer towards the air conditioner, leaned against it, his mouth gaped open towards the slits that blew out cool air.

“I…I had the gun to my face, Greg. I was…I was going to pull the trigger. One…Just _one more second_ and I would have…All because I just…wanted it to end. I h-held on for as long as I could, hoping that…that y’all were out there, trying to find me b-but I didn’t even know if y’all knew…”

He sniffled, still avoided meeting Greg’s eyes. Greg squeezed into the space between Nick and the dresser that sat against the other wall of the corner. He clumsily threw an arm around Nick’s, used his other hand to clutch onto Nick’s fingers, but Nick made it difficult, Greg was effectively hugging a stone.

“A-and then the fuh-fan gave out,” Nick cried, and Greg realized why Nick was so instant on sitting next to the air conditioner. His life support. “Time was endless down there but I knew…it wasn’t going to last forever. That _I_ wasn’t going to last forever, no matter how long I tried…A-and for all you guys knew…y’all were just recovering a body.”

“But we weren’t. You weren’t just…another corpse we were exhuming, you…You were _rescued,_ Nick. You’re meant to be _here,”_ Greg shook the ball to make his point, which earned a crack of a smile, unmistakable even through the crying. 

“For _what,_ Greg? Why am I still here? What’s…what’s the point? Why–how–w-what…” Nick started to fall into another fit of sobs.

“Well, looks like we got another case to solve. Most important one we’ll ever have,” Greg moved a hand to Nick’s face, wiping away the blood, and some of the tears as Nick met his eyes again. 

“What if it’s a cold case?”

“Not an option. I’ll put in as much overtime as I can on this one.”

“Thought you were maxed out on OT?”

“Only thing I’m maxed out on is my love for you,” Greg gently nudged Nick again, earning more than just a smile, a soft chuckle that broke up his crying. 

“Oh c’mon, G, I’m already cryin’,” Nick groaned, “World’s biggest sap, right here…”

“You’re not _sappy,_ Nick. A-and even if you are, it’s not a bad thing. Chicks dig the sap.”

“You’d know all about that, huh?” 

“Yeah, well, I know a lot of things. Like I know that you’d feel a hell of a lot better if you got back into bed.”

The smile on Nick’s faded slipped away with the banter, and he eyed the bed suspiciously. 

“Too soft. I think…in a way…I got used to the… _box,”_ Nick sighed. 

“That why you’re sitting here against the air conditioner? Aren’t you cold?” 

“Too hot. Needed air. Tried to open the window, but…” 

Greg looked up at the window, and a light bulb split the nerves in his brain apart. A web of cracks were splitting from the corner, and it didn’t really take all the education Greg had acquired to become a CSI to realize that this was the event that had led to Nick’s breakdown.

“Aw, Nicky. C’mon. Let’s get you in bed.” 

Greg lifted Nick up, guided him towards the bed. Nick resumed his fetal state, but gladly accepted the blanket that Greg threw on top of him with a weary smile as Greg waved a hand through his hair. 

“C-can you…keep the lights on?” Nick asked softly, when Greg motioned to leave the room.

“You’re not gonna fall asleep with the lights on.”

“I know…but I’m not going to in the dark, either.” 

“How about…if I stay with you? For a little bit?”

“Shouldn’t you be getting to work soon?”

“Eh, they can take it from some of that overtime I’ve racked up.”

Plus, Grissom would understand if he explained the circumstances, he was more lenient than ever as of late, but he wasn’t going to tell Nick that. Yet. 

Greg crawled on top of the bed, positioning himself behind Nick, he wrapped his hands around him and pulled him to his chest. Nick giggled at the role reversal of their usual bed sharing, and Greg smiled. 

“You are…” Nick muttered as his body finally relaxed, his eyes closed for the first time in gentle sleepiness as opposed to a tightly squeezed clench. “…meant to be here, too.” 


End file.
